Chilcoot

Spring is in the air and so is Pat! Upper Chilcoot has to be my favorite cruiser run. I love how it starts on the back side of Madonna Mountain and works its way back to the front. You get beautiful views of the Presidential Range in New Hampshire from the top. I also like coming through the S turn and then getting the view towards Lake Champlain. We have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating and 77 out of 78 trails open.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day here in Northern Vermont! The close to Spring Equinox Sun shined brightly across the upper spine of the Green Mountains, as the early sub-zero temperatures moderated to a quite comfortable level. I personally have been skiing my tail off lately, so I thought I might take it easy and enjoy a few cruisers. I grabbed a brand new pair of 4FRNT skis, and headed up Madonna to carve some corduroy. My first run was down Chilcoot, which has a great variety of turns, bends, dips and rolls. Combine that with a little speed and fresh skis, and you’re sure to have a fun time and warm your legs up as well. My next run was down Drifter, another long cruiser off of Madonna, with equally as much character as Chilcoot.

I nabbed the first picture below from the top of Shuttle, which is accessed off of Drifter and connects you back to Sterling. You can see the top of Mt. Mansfield AKA “The Chin” in the background, this is the highest point in the state of Vermont at 4,393′. In the foreground you can see a zone known as “The Highway” which is part of the 1000 skiable acres here at Smugglers’. Make sure if you are planning on skiing or riding anywhere off trail that you play it safe, know where you are going, and don’t ride alone. If you are interested in learning more about side-country skiing and riding, perhaps look into a private lesson/guide, which is booked at the Ski and Ride desk by the hour for up to 6 hours.

I headed over to Sterling from there via Shuttle, and headed up the mountain to ski Black Snake to Practice Slope, so I could do my locals race runs. There was a lot going on in this part of the mountain. There were two slalom courses set for training, the locals race Giant Slalom, the machine made bump lines, and the two big jumps in The Zone. I ended up taking a couple laps on the T-Bar so I could try each of these things. It was a pretty cool sight watching everyone practicing in their own way so I grabbed the second picture to try to show everything that was going on.

Tomorrow look for sunny skies, temperatures moderating even more, and probably many folks enjoying the sun in the upper lot! There will be skiing and riding on our three mountains and all 8 lifts will be operating.

Madonna Mountain Trails, L to R: Doc Dempsey’s (a small section is visible), Upper FIS, Freefall (with a clump of trees in the middle), and Upper Liftline (featuring the headwall where the Extreme Challenge takes place on March 8th).

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. Of course I love all the great skiing that Smuggs has to offer, and it has been extremely GREAT lately! I also enjoy the social aspect of our friendly mountain. I ran into SSU legend Sherm White in Green Peppers and he said he was looking forward to reading the Blog. I shared a joke with Fletch and Doug who were holding court in the Black Bear with regulars and irregulars including Larry & Michele from Long Island, Tom & June from New Jersey, and Jean from Vermont (famous for her Maple Cotton Candy). I got to say hi to Steve Wry of Mountain Ops. He told me that Matt McCawley, also filling in for Hugh this week, was in the first group of Mitey Mites kids along with his daughter. I exchanged greetings with Sara, as she was cheerily checking tickets at the Madonna I Lift. My run of the day was the classic Chillycoot > Catwalk > Fizz > Lower Doc’s > Ruthie’s > Curley’s > Meadowlark. This ‘run’ is 2,610 feet of vertical and 3 miles of unadulterated joy and I dedicated it to recently departed friend and former Smuggs co-worker Bruce Tetrault.

I started the day with the Cat Trax Express on the Upper Mountain Fresh Tracks tour. The temperature was mild and the wind was light. There was some nice soft morning light on Upper Chilcoot as we skied the fresh corduroy. I stopped many times to take in the wonderful views. Today we opened the Prohibition and Zone Terrain Parks. I had a blast watching the skiers and riders hitting the big jumps. We have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 77 out of 78 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. 174 acres of freshly groomed terrain for Sunday. The forecast calls for 2 inches on new snow tonight.

I started the day off with the Fresh Trax Cat Trax Express. We left the Base Lodge at 7 am this morning and headed up Madonna Mountain. The air was cold and the sky was clear. It was wonderful to watch the sun rise over the presidential range in New Hampshire. After taking in the amazing sights and snapping a few photos it was time to ski and ride. The corduroy on Chilcoot was just fantastic. Later in the day I go to ski with my good friends the Rule Family. We had a great time on Upper FIS, Doc Dempsey’s, Bootlegger, Treasure, and the Birch Run Terrain Park. I think everyone’s favorite part of the day was finding powder stashes in the glades. Pictured here is Ken finding some of that fluffy stuff! We have top to bottom skiing and riding on all 3 mountains with all 8 lifts operating. We have 69 trails open with terrain for all ability levels. Tonight we plan to groom 33 trails for a grand total of 165 acres of freshly groomed terrain. Tomorrow’s forecast calls for snow and mix to develop in the afternoon and we could see up to 9 inches of new snow by Monday night.

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. “If there’s a fork in the trail… TAKE IT!” so says Fletch, the eminent Philosopher and Black Bear Bartender. I took a run on Upper Chillycoot with the Socrates of the Slopes and the Tuesday Crew of Brett, Peter, and Dale & Darcy.

Two other pearls of wisdom from Fletch: “there are no bad conditions, just bad gear” and “getting excited about a snowstorm is like getting excited about a pay raise – you could be disappointed if it’s not as big as you thought it was going to be”.

I’m going to throw caution to the wind, and get excited about the 4 inches of new snow we could get by Wednesday night, and by the primo snowmaking conditions that are in the forecast for the rest of the week – both of which should lead to more trails opening. That’s the fork in the trail I’m taking. OK… I’m done for now, but don’t stick a fork in me… that would hurt.

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. 23 inches of snow in the past week and another 3 to 6 inches of snow by Thursday morning is in the forecast! The mountain is in great shape going into the Holidays. Today’s combination of fog and early winter/late afternoon light had me singin’ Foggy Mountain Breakdown. In fact, a mogul snuck up on me as I rounded the hairpin turn on Upper Chilcoot. You know that “woo” feeling, when your stomach stays in the air a little longer than the rest of your body. Later, I talked to a guest who said he very much enjoyed his first day of skiing the East in 48 years, and his first day ever of skiing at Smuggs! In related news our Nordic Center is open with 12km of trails. We’re all covered in SNOW!

Rockin’ Ron for Hugh. From Jeffersonville take Route 108 South and that will bring you home. Madonna Mountain (aka the Mother) will be open for skiing and riding this weekend! Who says your mama don’t love you?

P.S. I know I’m not alone in thinking that when you drive up a mountain you should be heading North. Let me know if you agree.

The spring skiing and riding is fantastic. The groomed trails were nice this morning. I did a cruiser on Upper Chilcoot carving some GS turns. I could feel the snow getting softer as I worked my way down the mountain. I ran into Mike McAdoo from Smuggs Terrain Parks a.k.a. Gravity Control and he was inspecting the pond he built. The 2nd Annual Pond Skimming is tomorrow Saturday, April 5. He told me that this year’s pond is even longer than last year’s. The event starts at noon and spectators are welcome.

I started the day off with the Cat Trax Fresh Trax Tour up Madonna Mountain this morning. It was a little cloudy but we could still see Lake Champlain and the Presidential Range in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. There were a few people on the tour who had never been on top of a mountain before. They were amazed with the beautiful views in every direction. I skied down Chilcoot and enjoyed the fresh corduroy. I went to the Zone after finishing the morning report. There was a group of skiers and riders that were nailing the rails and jumps. Pictured here are two of the skiers and I was lucky enough to capture them getting the grab at the same time.

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Hugh Johnson

Hello skiers and riders! Thanks for checking out my blog. I've been skiing Smuggs since I was a young 'un, when my family moved to Vermont and made the resort a temporary home base. Full circle — now I'm introducing my own family to the mountain! Each day you'll find an entry and photo on mountain conditions and happenings, highlighting the great terrain we have spread over three mountains and the awesome adventures that skiers and riders of all ages can have out there! You'll also hear from Rockin' Ron Carter a couple days during the week. Maybe you'll spot him on his favorite run — Pirate's Plank on Sterling Mountain. We'll be out there on the slopes, and hope to see you — thanks for skiing and riding Smuggs!